Food preserver



Feb. 14, 1928.

1,659,333 A. ROBERTS FOOD PRESERVBR Filed Nov. 2'7 1925 Patented Feb. 14, 1928.

UNITED STATES 1,659,333 P AT-ENTJ? o rr i C E-E LOUIE AUGUSTA ROBERTS; or JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI, ASSIGNOR or ONE-THIRD T HUGH "J. McINNIS, or JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI.

FOOD PRESERVER.

Application filed November 27, 1925. Serial No. 71,791

vidual covers for .the ies'peotive receptacles with means foriholding-each. cover in closed position to thereby fix the receptacle in the carrierand at the same time seal the open mouth of the receptaclel The carrier, as a whole, is open'at the bottomso that when the carrier is placed in a refrigerator or light compartment the independent receptacles are'open to direct contact with the cooled air, thereby ;maint aining the contents of the'recep'taeles at the de-' siredtemperature for theirpreserv'ation.

The invention is directly concerned with the storage and preservation'of food stuffs of this character which may be thus separ'ately confined, for example in a refrigerator, in order to prevent the odor of one affecting the others and to maintain each foodstufl wholly, independent both as to its storage and withdrawal for use.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. l is a perspective view of the preferred form of the carrier.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the same.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional .view, showing particularly the means for sealing the containers. I

Fig. 4 is a sectional view through the top plate showing particularly the corrugations therein between the container openings.

Fig. 5 is a broken perspective view of a modified form.

The improved carrier is of a box-like form having a front and a rear wall 1 and side walls 2, the carrier being fully open at the bottom. A plate 3 forms the permanent upper surface of the carrier and its edges are shaped to provide depending flanges 4 to be secured to the side walls and front and rear walls and thereby maintain the carrier as a unit. The top plate 3 is formed with a. Se-

ries of openings 5, each of which is adapted"- to receive a container or jar 6 of wide open mouth andha'ving a length somewhat less than the height of thefcarriera' The contain ers 5 have annular flanges 7 near the upper edges, and these flanges rest upon the"top"-ii0 plate 3 to support the jars removably 'in place from said top plate. A cover 8 is providedfor-each jar, thesefcovers being hinged. at 9, preferably on the transverse inedia'ii' line of the top plate, as shown. The'c0vers are designed to be secured in closed position bysprmg catches 10, one for each cover plate secured to the dependingflaiige t of thetop plate and cooperating with the free edge of the particular cover to holdtlie same in lowered or closed position. The catches 10 have finger extensions 11 whereby they may be conveniently operated to release the cover plates. Each cover plate has an annular proection l2 on the lower surface, designed when the cover plate is closed to cooperate with a sealing ring or gasket13 resting upen: the container fian e 7, with the result that said cover plate Wlll seal the particular conj tainer when the cover plate is closed as well as hold said container against independent movement in the top plate 3. Itis to be un-" dcrstood that the walls of the carrier shown in the preferred form are of hardwood. and that the carrier as a whole is constructed in the form of a drawer. v

In Fig. 5, I have shown a slightly modified form in which the carrier as'a whole'is con structed of metal, that is to say, the front and rear walls 14 and side walls 15 are of an metal plate integral with or' directly secured to the top plate 16. In this form, the walls are formed with openings 17 for the admissionof cooled air to the containers, and the side walls 15 are connected by brace strips 18 to provide more rigid construction and to in a measure protect the lower ends of the containers. Aside from the details notedl the construction of the form shown in Fig. 5 is similar to that of the preferred form.

It is of course to be understood that the carrier may be formed for the reception of any desired number of containers 6, there being of course an individual cover plate for each container. The carrier, as a whole, may 106 be readily inserted into, or withdrawn from, an appropriate com artment in a refrigerator or ice box and wlien so arranged the con erator,whil at the saine time the contents of" the respective containers are maintained entirely separated from each other and from the other contents of the refrigeratoriand are sealed against the admission of air or escape of odors. Thus a large variety of foodstuffs may be kept in a refrigeraton without the liability of contamination o fsiieh'food stuffs by the odors of other food stuffs, by expo sure to the a'1r,oifinse 'et's. f

Th on ainers 61am ,prfit bUii i th form ofopenl'month glass j'ars, tl'1 o ugh it is to be ju'nder'stood' that any for'rn or shape of a ntain'er may be jusedl so l on'g" p app e less sohd foodstuffs maybe readily '1ntro-' i i 0 W ra n i q i it fi'lur itli eof, Ea-m o th t th material. i 1 wliih' t he' containers are made i's unnnport ant so long -as' it' may be readily maintained in a "clean"cond ition, n p I In the use of he carrier'in a refrigerator, it is' of courseap'parent that theentir'e length of containers below th'e top :plate is "freely exposed to the circulating refrigerant, so that the contents of these containers is readily subjected to the full coolinginfliiene'e of the refrigerant. When the contents of any container is desired for, ii se' the carrier, as a whole, may be withdrawn froni the refrigervator, the 'cover plate 0t thepartieular eo n tainer opened, and the desired quantity of the food stuff withdrawn, this operation in no wise afiecting any of the other'con-.

tainers or the food stuffs therein.

It is of course tol be understood that the carrier in either fo'r n may beconstructerl in any size and may he.o f greater. length than vidth or of greater width than length, and that it is preferred that. thelop plate be suitably corrugated at rariouspoints, as

indicated tit-l8, in order to strengthen the plate, particularly between the openings 5,

\Vhile'particularly useful in storing various kinds of food stufisina refrigerator, it is of courseapparentthatthe food preserver is not limited to this use but is well adapted for the storage of foods, or the like, which do not necessarily require a low temperature, butQ'whichit is highly important to maintain free of possible contamination or deterioration ,from exposure to the air or insects.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, is 1 11' A' food preserver comprising a carrier of box-like form open at the bottom and in cludingatop :plate formed ,with a series of container receiving openings, :1 cover plate for each opening, said cover plates being "hinged tothe top plate, a spring catch to engage with the free edge of each cover plate to hold th'same'in closed position, and a ,sealing oneach cover plate. 2. Ajcairier' 'of box like 'fornr including side wansand a t'op "pi'ate,"the carrier being formed with openingsto receive and support a plurality ofcontainers, and a cover for bottom, a gcover 'thinged to the top plate to fe0operate'ivitli eachopening and means carried the plate for securing the cover in operative position. i

4. A carrier of box like form including a top late formed with container receiving openings, the carrier being. fully open at the bottom, a series of co vers hinged'ly mounted on a line transverse the top plate and mom able to cooperate with'the. container or con- J tainers in said openings, and a catch for each eover operating to' secure the cover in position. to close the container-in a particular opening and prevent said container from being separated from the carrier.

5. A carrier of box like form including a 1"!) plate formed with container rer L'. openings, the. carrier being fully open at the .hol om, a series of covers hingcdly monnlil on a line transverse the top plate and m rable to cooperate with the container or rm:- tainers of said openings, and a catch {or eaclry(l\'t,r operating: to secure tlrrw-n-r in position to close the. container in a particular opening and prevent sairl remains-r from being separated from the carrier. the heigh ofthe carrier being slightly greater than the length of the container helon the top plate when said container is in a top plate pening.

In testimony whereof I atlix my signal ar LOUIE AUGUSTA ROBERTS. [as]! \\'holly'open at the bottom and the top plate ,eaeh eontainer hinged to the top plate and, des gnedto close the'.ciontanier and clamp 

